Severe bradycardia following fluoxetine administration: A case report in a young HIV‐1 infected woman

Abstract

Some reports in the literature suggest that fluoxetine can produce bradycardia in elderly people or in subjects with cardiovascular diseases, thus indicating that the drug should be used with caution in this kind of patient. The aim of this case report is to notify that the same adverse effect could be found in HIV-I infected patients. The HIV-1 infected patient we describe is a young woman not affected by cardiovascular pathologies who nevertheless developed severe bradycardia following fluoxetine administration. Therefore, we recommend caution not only when administering this drug to elderly people or subjects with cardiovascular diseases, but also to HIV-1 infected patients.

Efficacy of Paroxetine for the Treatment of Depression in the Context of HIV Infection

“…Our findings also show that paroxetine is a welltolerated drug. The adverse effects reported in this study belong to the well-known adverse effects profile of paroxetine, as derived from extensive studies performed in the general population; in particular, w e did not find rare or paradoxical adverse effects, as have been reported in connection with the use of other drugs, such as fluvoxamine and fluoxetine, in HIV-infected people (Grusi and Scarone, 1994;Grassi et al, 1995a;Grassi e t al.. 1995b).…”